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suzannem's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
ghood_27's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
erin38's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
angeleestlife's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
emilybutynski's review against another edition
4.0
Ah, Kristin Hannah. No disappointment here. Great characters, great story.
Meghann and Claire are sisters, seven years apart. They grew up with their mother, moving from town to town in a trailer. When Claire was 9, their mother went to LA for an audition and didn’t come back for more than a week. Meghann tracked down and called Claire’s father, who took them both in. But the sudden change in roles didn’t suit Meghann, and she acted out. She left Claire and Sam behind, and ventured off on her own.
Now, about 15 years later, Meghann is a successful divorce attorney. Claire owns the campground resort with her father, and has a 5 year-old daughter. Their mother is a D-list celebrity. Meghann and Claire have a strained relationship after Meghann left Claire behind. She is a workaholic and has more money than she knows what to do with. She is near a complete breakdown when her partner at work insists she take some time off.
Eventually, Meghann finds herself in the small town of Hayden with Claire. She has gone to meet Claire’s fiancée, who she’s known all of ten days and plans to marry in less than a month. Meghann is jaded and convinced love isn’t real. But Bobby is the real thing. Meghann plans their wedding and buys Claire a wedding dress, and in the process becomes closer to her sister.
At the end of their honeymoon, Claire gets sick. She arrives back in Washington, having left Bobby in Nashville perusing his big break, and cannot remember her way home. Meghann immediately takes her to the hospital, and Claire is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. After many second opinions, Claire undergoes radiation treatment. Meghann eventually has to call Bobby to bring him home, because Claire refuses to call him away from his dream, and she is scared he won’t come, but he does.
After the weeks of radiation, the tumor is smaller but still inoperable. Claire accepts the inevitable, but Meghann does not. She discovers that the man she’s been seeing, Joe, is a radiologist. She yells at him, and he finally looks at Claire’s films and then calls a surgeon in from CA. He performs the surgery and Claire lives. In the epilogue, Joe and Meghann are falling in love, Bobby is going to get his big break, and Claire is as healthy as she can be. Happily ever after, essentially.
It should come as no surprise that I loved this book. I do love love, after all. This is one of Kristin Hannah’s more famous books, and I was really looking forward to getting to it. I can see why it is beloved. The characters are great. But for me, having already read Firefly Lane, I thought I knew exactly what would happen very early on. Thankfully, I was wrong, and the ending is completely different from Firefly Lane. There are definitely some parallels though, which was interesting to me, to see some of what may have inspired the events of the later book.
Overall, I really loved the characters. I loved Meghann and Joe especially. I loved their story and their journey. This is one I may come back to in the future. It was a really enjoyable read.
Meghann and Claire are sisters, seven years apart. They grew up with their mother, moving from town to town in a trailer. When Claire was 9, their mother went to LA for an audition and didn’t come back for more than a week. Meghann tracked down and called Claire’s father, who took them both in. But the sudden change in roles didn’t suit Meghann, and she acted out. She left Claire and Sam behind, and ventured off on her own.
Now, about 15 years later, Meghann is a successful divorce attorney. Claire owns the campground resort with her father, and has a 5 year-old daughter. Their mother is a D-list celebrity. Meghann and Claire have a strained relationship after Meghann left Claire behind. She is a workaholic and has more money than she knows what to do with. She is near a complete breakdown when her partner at work insists she take some time off.
Eventually, Meghann finds herself in the small town of Hayden with Claire. She has gone to meet Claire’s fiancée, who she’s known all of ten days and plans to marry in less than a month. Meghann is jaded and convinced love isn’t real. But Bobby is the real thing. Meghann plans their wedding and buys Claire a wedding dress, and in the process becomes closer to her sister.
At the end of their honeymoon, Claire gets sick. She arrives back in Washington, having left Bobby in Nashville perusing his big break, and cannot remember her way home. Meghann immediately takes her to the hospital, and Claire is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. After many second opinions, Claire undergoes radiation treatment. Meghann eventually has to call Bobby to bring him home, because Claire refuses to call him away from his dream, and she is scared he won’t come, but he does.
After the weeks of radiation, the tumor is smaller but still inoperable. Claire accepts the inevitable, but Meghann does not. She discovers that the man she’s been seeing, Joe, is a radiologist. She yells at him, and he finally looks at Claire’s films and then calls a surgeon in from CA. He performs the surgery and Claire lives. In the epilogue, Joe and Meghann are falling in love, Bobby is going to get his big break, and Claire is as healthy as she can be. Happily ever after, essentially.
It should come as no surprise that I loved this book. I do love love, after all. This is one of Kristin Hannah’s more famous books, and I was really looking forward to getting to it. I can see why it is beloved. The characters are great. But for me, having already read Firefly Lane, I thought I knew exactly what would happen very early on. Thankfully, I was wrong, and the ending is completely different from Firefly Lane. There are definitely some parallels though, which was interesting to me, to see some of what may have inspired the events of the later book.
Overall, I really loved the characters. I loved Meghann and Joe especially. I loved their story and their journey. This is one I may come back to in the future. It was a really enjoyable read.
aihposknil's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
wessela's review against another edition
5.0
Kristin Hannah is genius. This story about a reconciliation between sisters and a father is heart-warming. Beautiful story.
beth0919's review against another edition
3.0
It definitely isn't my favorite Kristin Hannah book. I thought it was very slow at the beginning and took too long to really get the story going.